Category: News

116 former Provincial Council members from the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) and the United National Party (UNP) have pledged their commitment to support President Ranil Wickremesinghe’s victory in the upcoming presidential election.

President Ranil Wickremesinghe announced his candidacy as an independent in the upcoming presidential election, emphasizing his commitment to advancing the country with a fresh vision and unbiased program during a meeting at the Waters Edge hotel with former Provincial Council representatives from the SLPP and UNP.

President revealed plans to delegate responsibilities to all 10 governing bodies, including the 9 provincial governments and the central government, to carry out his initiatives.

The President further emphasized the importance of safeguarding and advancing the country’s growing economy. He asserted that the agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) must remain intact, highlighting that it is everyone’s responsibility to continue working toward economic progress, even during elections.

Deputy Speaker Ajith Rajapakse, State Ministers Shehan Semasinghe, Janaka akkumbura and D.B. Herath, MPs Mahindananda Aluthgamage and Anura Priyadarshana Yapa, along with former Chief Ministers also attended.

The ruling Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna’s (SLPP) National Organiser Government Parliamentarian Namal Rajapaksa said that now that the Rajapaksas (a reference to the family of former Presidents Mahinda Rajapaksa and Gotabaya Rajapaksa) are no longer aligned with President and independent Presidential candidate Ranil Wickremesinghe, the latter would be able to secure the support of Tamil and Muslim community-based political parties.

Speaking to the media yesterday (31 July), he said that there were previous allegations that certain MPs representing the main Parliamentary Opposition Party, the Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB), and Tamil and Muslim community-based political parties were not supporting Wickremesinghe as the Rajapaksas were with him.

“The President can now approach the SJB and Tamil and Muslim community based political parties and seek their support. The allegation was that they were not willing to support him as he was with those who engage in politics based on the Sinhala-Buddhist ideology, but now, they are free to support him.”

When queried as to whether the SLPP would initiate disciplinary action against their MPs who have extended their support to Wickremesinghe in the Presidential Election, Namal Rajapaksa said that they would focus on going ahead with their election campaign more than on disciplinary action.

“Let’s see about it in the future. They (SLPP MPs supporting Wickremesinghe) are still discussing with Wickremesinghe and us. Some of them are having discussions with three or four parties.”

The Politburo of the SLPP which met at the official residence of SLPP Leader and Government MP Mahinda Rajapaksa in Colombo early this week, decided to field a Presidential candidate of its own instead of supporting Wickremesinghe. The SLPP expressed that they would further look into qualified individuals to contest for the Presidential Election and that the person with the most likelihood to win would officially be named the SLPP’s Presidential candidate in the coming days. However, many of the SLPP members including Cabinet and State Ministers and MPs have already expressed their support to Wickremesinghe.

Trust and Goodwill are the factors that India seeks from Sri Lanka, instead of short term benefits and acquiring assets.

Indian Envoy Santosh Jha expressed these views in Colombo yesterday, attending the launch of two books authored by K.V. Ganesharajan.

India-Sri Lanka relations have reached unprecedented heights, according to Santosh Jha, the High Commissioner of India to Sri Lanka.

Speaking on the current state of bilateral ties, Jha emphasized the multifaceted nature of the relationship and the progress achieved since both nations gained independence from colonial rule.

“India-Sri Lanka relations have come a very long way and are probably at their best in history, at least since our independence from colonial rule,” Jha remarked.

He highlighted the broad scope of connectivity efforts being undertaken, which include energy, land, digital, and people-to-people connections. Jha stressed the importance of these connections as the foundation of the bilateral relationship.

“Over a five-year horizon, you will see billions and billions of dollars coming in over the next five to ten years through this relationship into Sri Lanka,” Jha projected, underscoring the significant economic impact of the strengthened ties.

Jha also called on the legal profession to play a proactive role in shaping public opinion and supporting the bilateral relationship.

“The legal profession, which also builds public opinion, needs to speak for it and drive it. If we remain silent, we will repeat the mistakes of the past and miss out on future opportunities,” he cautioned.

The Central Committee of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) today met with President Ranil Wickremesinghe and expressed their unwavering support for his victory in the forthcoming presidential election, according to the President’s Media Division.

The SLFP’s Politburo and Central Committee had convened a meeting this evening (31) and a final decision was reached support President Wickremesinghe at the upcoming election.

MP Duminda Dissanayake further stated that, “Only the incumbent President Ranil Wickremesinghe has made a request in writing asking for our support.”

Meanwhile, 92 Members of Parliament including Ministers and State Ministers recently met with Wickremesinghe and pledged their support for the President in the upcoming presidential election to ensure his victory.

Despite the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) politburo deciding to field their own candidate in the upcoming Presidential election, a group of SLPP MPs and Ministers have expressed their support for President Wickremesinghe.

Sri Lanka and Pakistan have discussed further cooperation in economy and trade, defence and security, among other matters, at an annual consultation, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.

The seventh round of Bilateral Political Consultations between the two countries concluded at the Pakistani Foreign Ministry in Islamabad on Tuesday (30).

Foreign Secretary Aruni Wijewardane and the Foreign Secretary of Pakistan Muhammad Syrus Sajjad Qazi reviewed the current status of relations between the two South Asian neighbours.

“The areas of cooperation that were discussed at the meeting included economy and trade, defence and security, education, culture, media and sports, consular matters, agriculture as well as technology,” the MFA said in a statement.

Both countries agreed on the importance of high-level political exchanges in enhancing the bilateral relations. “In this context, a Foreign Ministerial visit to Pakistan is envisaged in the near future.”

Cooperation at multilateral and regional fora were also discussed.

The Sri Lanka delegation “thanked Pakistan for the steadfast support that it has been extending to Sri Lanka over the years at multilateral fora.”

The Pakistan delegation “commended the leadership and the people of Sri Lanka in stabilizing the debt crisis and stated that Pakistan could learn from Sri Lanka’s experience.”

Sri Lanka and Pakistan are both in the midst of International Monetary Fund bailout programmes.

“The delegations agreed on the need to increase connectivity and bilateral trade in enhancing economic growth, in particular air connectivity, between the two countries.

“Tourism and people-to-people contacts could be further enhanced through cultural, religious and sports links.

“The two sides also agreed to cooperate in meeting challenges of transnational organized crime such as drug trafficking which adversely impact both Sri Lanka and Pakistan.”